NPR 2009-07-12

President Obama has wrapped up his visit to Ghana where he told lawmakers they are proving that democracy can work in Africa. He also said Africa's future is up to Africans. NPR's Scott Horsley has more.

 Mr. Obama said Africa has an important role to play in shaping the 21st century, but he warned the continent won't meet its full potential unless Africans themselves embrace good government. Mr. Obama complained too many other parts of Africa have been hamstrung by corruption 1 and autocratic rule. "No person wants to live in a society where the rule of law gives way to the rule of brutality 2 and bribery 3."

Thousands of people lined in the streets of Ghana to welcome Mr. Obama, many wearing shirts and waving flags emblazoned with his likeness 4. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Accra, Ghana.

Taliban bomb attacks have left eight British soldiers dead over the past 24 hours in Afghanistan. The British deaths there now outnumbered those suffered by British troops in Iraq. Larry Miller 5 has more from London.

With the sudden, sharp rise in British battle deaths, Britain's Prime Minister and its Defense 6 and Foreign Secretaries have each broadcast their commitment to keeping UK forces in Afghanistan until the war is won. The latest to do so was the head of the military Sir Jock Stirrup. "It's tough going. And it's tough going because the Taliban have rightly identified Helmand as their vital ground. If they lose there, they lose everywhere. And they are throwing everything they have into it." With the increase in battle deaths, some leading lawmakers and the media have begun questioning Britain's role in the war, much of that due to widespread concern that its forces have not been supplied with sufficient resources to protect themselves. For NPR News, I'm Larry Miller in London.

Tonight's scheduled launch of the space shuttle Endeavor was scrubbed after at least 11 lightning strikes were observed near the launch pad. NASA engineers want to make sure no critical systems were damaged. Pat Duggins of member station WMFE reports.

NASA is checking space shuttle Endeavor and its solid rocket boosters from lightning damage. The shuttle contains sensitive electronics and the boosters use explosive charges to safely push the rocket free of the shuttle after lift-off. NASA's Mike Moses says technicians will spend the coming hours trying to make sure the shuttle is ready to go. "We're gonna go and make sure that all the critical systems can be either checked physically 7 or cleared through analysis. So before we launch, we will know 100% that even the stuff is not powered, we're confident it's good." Seven astronauts are waiting to begin NASA's latest mission to the International Space Station. The crew will deliver and install the final section of Japan's Kibo laboratory. For NPR News, I'm Pat Duggins in Orlando.

A car bomb exploded at a busy marketplace in northern Iraq today. At least four people were killed and more than three dozen others injured. And in Baghdad, a US army sergeant 8 was sentenced to three years in jail in the accidental shooting death of a fellow solider. The sergeant pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter.

This is NPR News from Washington.

Vacationers in northern France were bracing 9 for gigantic traffic jams today, a tradition in the summer there known as black Saturdays. Frank Browning has more from Paris.

Black Saturdays have become an annual habit in France reflective of the rigid 10 summer vacation schedules that send the French and their northern neighbors scurrying 11 to the fantasy of deluxe 12 Côte d'Azur vacations. Normally, traffic jams today and again on the first of August, stretch from 400 to 500 miles long. But road authorities say it could be even worse this year as recession-anxious travelers give up foreign travel for a seaside and mountain camping. Still more worrisome, recent drops in highway accidents have been reversed across France. Highway fatalities 13 in June were reported as 30% up from a year ago. Most reserved trains are also fully 14 booked. For NPR News, I'm Frank Browning in Paris.

The sound of funeral services today for a former NFL quarterback Steve McNair at the stadium at the University of Southern Mississippi. Nearly every resident of his hometown of Mount Olive arrived on buses provided by the McNair family. Among the speakers at the service was Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young, who says McNair was his idol 15 when he was growing up. "I used to walk, talk and I tried to be like Steve like everyday. Steve was like, you know, a hero, a hero to me, and you know, heroes are not supposed to die." The 36-year-old McNair was shot and killed on the fourth of July by his girlfriend who then killed herself. He was buried at a private gravesite service following the funeral.